MGM or Animal Kingdom

[heatherstarr74]

My daughter just won a trip to Disney but it only includes our lodging and 1 day park hopper passes. We don't have the money to buy more days but are excited to get to go at least one day. We have been to the parks in 2011 but I don't know what is new. We know we want to go to Magic Kingdom probably the 2nd part of the day. Which park would you suggest for the morning MGM or Animal Kingdom? It will be me, hubby, 16 year old son, and our daughters are 13, 10 and 8.

 

[Terra Nova guy]

It's a little hard to say without knowing your family's interests. Both Hollywood Studios and Animal Kingdom are similar in the sense they each have one thrill ride (DHS - Rockin Roller Coaster, AK - Expedition Everest) and both have a couple shows. If your family overall is more interested in movie related attractions, go to DHS. If they have an interest in animals/nature, go to AK.

However, I'm going to throw in another idea - Epcot. With only a one day ticket, you want to make the most of it. You could easily spend the full day at MK and not see it all. Since Epcot is closest to MK, you would not be wasting as much time travelling between parks. You might consider getting to Epcot at rope drop, try to do both Soarin' and Test Track (if possible, given standby wait times), then head right over to MK to get the most out of your one day. If you are able to make FP+ selections, make your three for MK later in the day.

 

[AlexisMaxMommy]

^^^ I second what he said. It is easier to travel between Epcot and MK, so you'll have less time wasted while waiting for transportation.

 

[mco65]

AK and HS are so different, its really dependent on you and your family. You wont go wrong either way but what Jeff mentioned above about hitting Epcot early and then heading over to MK makes a ton of sense.. something to think about.

 

[poeticdiabetic]

How about this- since you have only one day to go to WDW, why not just stay at Magic Kingdom? The reason why I'm thinking that is because it seems like you will be taking time in the travel from one park to another. It may feel even more rushed than usual if you try to fit two parks in one day. And if I had to spend only one day at a Disney park, it would be Magic Kingdom.

 

[McKelly]

I'm assuming your lodging is at WDW. I would go to the park with AM extra magic hours, whether that is DHS or AK, and get as much done as you can before the lines start to build. And then, as you have planned, I would go to Magic Kingdom. I would make my FP for later afternoon in the MK and not use FP in DHS or AK.

For what it's worth, my personal favorite park is AK.

 

[Newsies]

How about this- since you have only one day to go to WDW, why not just stay at Magic Kingdom? The reason why I'm thinking that is because it seems like you will be taking time in the travel from one park to another. It may feel even more rushed than usual if you try to fit two parks in one day. And if I had to spend only one day at a Disney park, it would be Magic Kingdom.

I was just about to say exactly this. Travel takes a lot of time and there's so many amazing things to experience at MK already that you might feel overwhelmed if you try to fit it into a two-park day.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

A lot of the DHS shows aren't going until after 11:00, so that would be my last choice for a morning only park.

 

[merbobear]

I wouldn't bother hopping, I would do the whole day at MK, sunrise until your feet can't carry you anymore!

 

[MandiC]

So hard to choose! Honestly though, I would likely split the day between MK and Epcot if I only had one day. I'd spend the morning at MK (and know that there is no way to see it all) and spend the evening at Epcot including watching IllumiNations at Epcot.

 

[Thing 1]

We would most likely choose to stay in MK the whole day, but if the hours are really long that day, we might try to get some time in a second park and we would choose Epcot. I do agree if you want to do one of the two above mentioned,
i would choose the one that had EMH if you qualify do get the most for your money, or ask the child that won which one she would choose.

 

[WendyLou]

I would probably stay in MK all day, if you had to choose another I would pick Epcot.

 

[heatherstarr74]

Thank you all for your replies. We will be staying a marriott grande vista. We definitely know we do not want to go to epcot. You all have given me lots to think about

 

[Happyinwonerland]

I would just stay at MK all day.

MG doesn't exist, it is now Hollywood Studios. I would choose that over animal kingdom, especially with the ages of your kids, but honestly, like the others have said, you're going to waste a ton of time traveling between parks.

I also would try really hard to come up with money for an additional park day if you can. 1 day is just not enough.

 

[FlightlessDuck]

If I had one day I would spend that whole day in the Magic Kingdom (or perhaps Hollywood Studios) and forego the park hopper.